


It Takes A Village

by Marie_Phantom



Series: Tumbleweed (Blowing In The Wind) [11]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Forced Steralisation, Mpreg, Multi, Past Miscarriage
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-12
Updated: 2015-01-12
Packaged: 2018-03-07 05:23:06
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,317
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3162818
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Marie_Phantom/pseuds/Marie_Phantom
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>How the baby loved the Avengers.</p>
            </blockquote>





	It Takes A Village

Loki starts showing half way through his fourth month. It's not much, but one day, Thor wakes up before Loki (who now sleeps like a stone), and looks at his belly, as he has done everyday. Normally, when Loki sleeps on his back, his belly sinks in beneath his ribs, and the sheet covering him has a furrow to it. But now, there is the tiniest little lump pushing the sheet out into a little mound.

Thor grins widely and, gently so as not to wake Loki, lays his head on Loki's hip, so that he's facing the lump. He lets his hand hover over the mound, and his palm tingles with his natural magic.

"Hello." He whispers into soft skin. His palm tingles just a bit sharper and he knows that the baby is reaching out. Thor had wanted to do this every time Loki had been pregnant in Asgard, but had never been allowed to do so. But now, he has the opportunity to monitor the baby as he wishes. He is a fertility god, and nothing pleases his soul more that letting his magic tell him that his baby is safe and healthy, nestled in Loki's womb.

"That tickles." Thor hears Loki whisper above him, and he moves his head to look at Loki. Loki had perched himself up onto his elbows, and he gazes at Thor with a soft expression on his face. There is no smile (he's too tired for that), but his eyes tell Thor of his love. Thor crosses his arms across Loki's hip and plants his face on them, gazing at Loki with what he is sure is a soppy expression on his face.

"You have a belly." He tells Loki, who huffs.

"I have always had one."

"Previously, if you stood sideways you would be invisible to the naked eye. Now you have a little lump, telling people you are there."

Loki smiles softly and runs a hand through Thor shoulder length hair. Loki has been cutting it regularly, and now Thor has braids down each temple, but no other. 

"Your spawn is sitting on my bladder." Loki finally says and move out of the bed, walking to the toilet and shutting the door. Thos sits up and stretches, his back cracking.

"Don't call the future ruler of Asgard spawn." He admonishes through he closed door.

"It is spawn as long as it continues to jump up and down on my lower organs." 

Thor grins. "My love, you have 7 months more of this. How will you ever cope?" 

The toiler flushed, and Loki comes to the door. He leans against the frame and looks at Thor, his arms crossed. "I expect that I shall be doing a great deal of complaining. Are you ready for that?"

Thor smiles wider and pulls Loki to his chest, twirling him around and listening to Loki shriek in surprise. He tumbles Loki down on to the bed and leans over him, his hair falling down and curtaining Loki's head, so that all Loki can see is him. Loki reaches up and cups Thor's cheeks.

"Oh, my love. There is nothing that you could do that could make me love you any less. Bring it on."

And Thor leans down and kisses Loki, de-realing their plans for the next couple of hours.

 

 

************

 

 

Loki is magic, and Thor is magic, and therefore the baby is also magic. Loki knows this, and therefore he is not surprised when the magazine he has been reading in the common room suddenly is yanked from his hands and starts revolving above his head. Loki merely sits back and looks at it, pleased at his child's already impressive skills.

"That's kind of awesome." A voice says from the door and Loki doesn't bother turning. Natasha comes in to the room with two cold glasses of milk, placing one in front of Loki and drinking from the other as she sits beside him. They both lean back into the cushions and watch the magazine revolve.

"My child is strong." Loki says proudly, placing a hand over the lump.

"It's a kidney bean. Can it really do magic so early?" Natasha asks. Loki isn't offended.

"Yes. It has two strong magic users as parents, and my daughter started displaying her magic almost from the moment of conception."

Natasha nods. "I keep forgetting you have kids."

Loki bits his lip, but nods. 

"They sit there in silence, drinking their milk, before Natasha shuffles and looks at Loki. "Can I ask you a question?"

Loki nods his head, indicating that she can continue.

"What's is like? Being pregnant?"

Loki narrows his eyes at her, thinking. "I..." he starts and then stops. He chews his lips, trying to find a way of answering that won't cause Natasha any upset. "It is...difficult to explain."

Natasha narrows her own eye at him. "Try."

"I am trying. I have been pregnant many times, and each one was different from the last."

"How can that be?" Natasha says. She shuffles closer and leans on her arm, looking at Loki with intense eyes. "You've had kids from the same parent. Angrboda, or something."

"Angrboda." Loki nods. "But even then, all three were different pregnancies. I could never learn from the others, because each one was different in their own way. Even my..." Loki's voice cracks. He swallows and tries again. "Even my children from the Chitauri, each one was different. Many died in the womb. Many were aborted before they could form. A couple I gave birth to live, but they were..." Loki maps his jaw shut and looks out of the window, working his throat with tears glistening in his eyes.

Natasha lets him sit in silence to compose himself.

"Whats this one like?" she finally asks softly. Loki sniffs harshly and looks at her. There is no judgement in her eyes. Merely curiosity.

"It's...surprisingly easy." Loki says after a while. "I...this child's magic doesn't war with mine, as others have done. It compliments it instead. I still won't risk doing magic unless in extreme circumstances, but there is no sickness in my bones that I have felt before."

Natasha mulls this over and then leans closers. "What does it feel like...in you? I mean, in your body?"

Loki smiles at her. He gently takes her hands and puts them on his lump. She can't feel anything, but the magic that flows through his veins and the baby's own magic immediately take effect. Natasha's hair, which she has once again cut to a bob, suddenly becomes weightless, swirling softly about her face. She looks startled, and then suddenly delighted.

"Full." Loki answers, taking his hands away. Natasha's hands remain. "Settled."

Thye sit there for over an hour, Natasha's hair twirling softly about her face. She explains about why she cannot have children, about when she and the other girls of the Red Room were taken to the doctors one afternoon and sterilised. She tells, in a chocked whisper, about how Bucky, who had been away during that time, had crept into their dormitory that night and slept on the floor, surrounded by girls all crying for reasons they didn't know. She says about the time she told Clint that he couldn't have children, and how he had sat on the roof for the night, crying loudly and screaming to god about how unfair it was. At the end of this, Loki pulls her into a hug, and then explains that he can fix her.

"No."

"But why?" Loki frowns.

Natasha smiles and hugs Loki tighter. "Because now I couldn't think about having a child. I don't want one. I'm perfectly happy to be the cool aunt to your sprog."

Dusk falls, and they are not disturbed. When Natasha eventually goes to bed that night, her hair is still twirling softly about her face.

(Clint adores it.)

 

 

***********

 

 

Bucky adores babies. Steve could have told anyone that. Bucky, as a boy, had literally followed prams around the parks so that he could catch a view of a baby, and anyone expecting a baby in their neighbourhood got used to having Bucky Barnes sitting on their stoop, pressing his head to their stomachs and, when the baby was born, sitting for hours with the baby in his arms. The mothers all coo about what a good father he will be in the future, but Bucky knows that he will never be a father. Not if he wants to have Steve as his spouse. 

(And he does.  _He does_.)

Now that Loki is no longer hiding his pregnancy, and is instead choosing to let the process develop with absolutely no hindrance from his own magic (a first for him) Bucky is doing everything in his power to ensure that the baby will be happy and comfortable in its new home when it's born.

Thor wonders on occasion whether it is possible to be usurped as the father of this baby by someone who hasn't even touched Loki in that way. But Loki hits him around the head with a rolled up newspaper when he says this, and says that he is being stupid.

The truth is that Bucky is terrified that the baby will become a target of persecution when it is born, not just by Asgard (that is almost a given) but by H.Y.D.R.A, due to his close relationship with the parents.

"Bucky, it's protected." Steve soothe one evening, curling up behind Bucky and pulling him so that his back is against Steve's bare chest (he can feel Steve's steady heart). "It's the most protected baby in the world."

"It's going to have a target painted on it's back before it's even born." Bucky whimpers. Steve kisses his hairline.

"It's got powerful parents, powerful aunts and uncles and an A.I that's leaning lullabys for it. It's going to be fine."

But Bucky still worries and takes to hovering around Loki (and his stomach), until Loki snaps at him one day.

"Honestly, if you want to check on it yourself, just ask."

"Huh?" Bucky asks.

"You haven't stopped looking around for available exists since you came into the room." Loki says, draining tuna for his pasta bake. He's sticking to his normal diet, because, for the first time ever, he is having no weird cravings.

Bucky flushes. "I don't know what you're talking about." He mumbles. Loki huffs and sticks the dish in the oven, allowing it to bake. He then stalks up to Bucky and grabs his hand, dragging him to the sofa. He then forcibly manhandles Bucky until his head is pressing against Loki's belly.

"Loki..." Bucky asks, trailing off when Loki raps him on the temple.

"Wait for it." Loki says. They sit there for a moment, and just when Bucky is about to get up, he feels as though he is suddenly being pulled down a long, dark, warm tunnel.

"What...?" he gasps. Loki's hand rests on his head.

Bucky feels as though he is swimming in a warm pool. There's a tingling sensation all around him, and a  _thump thump-THUMPTHUMP-thumpthump_ in his hearing which he knows is Loki's enlarged heart. He gasps, and suddenly something is pressing against his chest. A light feeling, like a bird caught in his palm. His heart quickens, and as he shifts, he feels the warm water swirls around him. 

"Oh." He says softly, and suddenly he feels a swirl of happiness (it's the only way he can describe it), flow though him. He floats softly in the warmth, happiness and amusement flowing though him. The tingles against his skin grown stronger for a second, and then he is back on the couch, his head pressed against Loki's belly.

"What was..." Bucky said, not noticing the tears slipping down his face until Loki wiped them away.

"That was my baby, saying he is safe." Loki kissed Bucky's temple and brought his down so that he cuddled with Loki on the couch. 

"That's some powerful magic." Bucky said, still feeling overwhelmed.

"It's going to be so powerful." Loki whispered. He flailed out his hand and grabbed the remote, turning on the television as background noise. Bucky sniffed and smelt the pasta bake cooking. He was about to say something when Loki waved his hand, and the oven turned off. The pasta bake sailed out and tin-foil wrapped itself over the top, keeping the heat in.

"I thought you weren't supposed to do magic." Bucky murmured.

"Small magic. Don't tell Thor." Loki warned.

Bucky smiled. "Don't worry. I won't."

They lay there for a time, when Bucky groaned and sat up, stretching. Loki remained lying down. 

"Has the baby ever done that to Thor?" Bucky asked as he worked out the kinks. Loki opened his closed eyes and nodded.

"Yes, frequently. Apparently the baby likes to feel both parents."

"I should hope that it does. Do you know what it's going to be yet?" Bucky stood up and went to the kitchen, getting plates out and serving both himself and Loki large helpings of the pasta back.

"No. It doesn't want to let me know." Loki sounded surprisingly nonchalant.

"Oh." Bucky pulled out forks and went back to the sofa, balancing everything. He nudged Loki until he sat up and then handed him a plate. "Has that happened before?" he asked after a few minutes of silent eating.

Loki swallowed and then said. "Yes. With every pregnancy I have known around about now what sex the baby is going to be. I can only assume that, because the baby is so powerful, it is preventing me from discovering the sex."

"That must be annoying for you."

Loki shrugged. "Not really. It it a nice feeling, not knowing. I rather like that it's going to be a surprise."

Bucky didn't look convinced. But he allowed Loki his surprise, saying "If you say so."

They ate until Steve and Thor came into the room, having been at an Avengers briefing. Each looked worn out. Bucky grinned at Loki and put his plate down, holding out his hand to Steve.

"Steve, come here." He said, guiding Steve down so that he sat beside Loki. "You gotta feel this..."

 

 

***********

 

 

Loki hated pelvic exams. Loathed them. He spent the entire time glaring at the ceiling, answering Bruce or Betty in monosyllables and as soon as he was told he was done, he was out of the room as quickly as possible.

Today, it was Bruce at the business end, with Betty side by side with Loki, running a ultrasound minor over his stomach, which was slathered in cool gel. 

"How are you feeling, Loki?" Bruce asked. Loki scowled and Thor rapped him on the back of the hand.

"Fine." He gritted out.

"Any strange sickness or unusual feelings I should know about?" Bruce continued to poke inside of him and Loki resisted the urge to kick him.

"No."

Bruce sighed and Loki swallowed down the urge to squirm as he felt it against his leg. He sighed when Bruce removed his fingers and stripped off his gloves. Normally Loki would be already out of the room, but Betty was still trying valiantly to find a clear picture of the baby on the ultrasound monitor, so Loki stayed where he was.

"Why can't I see it?" Betty murmured, sounding increasingly irritated. Loki fought down the urge to chuckle.

"It doesn't want to be seen." Thor said. He stroked Loki's hand and shared his smile when Loki turned his head to look at Thor.

"That's all very well and good, but we need to check it's safe."

"I could tell you that." Thor told them. Betty gave him a look.

"For our own piece of mind." Bruce said, not looking up from where he was writing on Loki's chart. Betty snarled in frustration and flung the monitor to where the main screen was. Loki was about to get up off the table when she leaned over his stomach and crooned "Baby, we need to see you."

Loki threw a confused glance at her, but she ignored him, patting his stomach gently. 

"We just need to check whether you and your mother are okay. So if you could be a real darling, could you let us know you're okay."

Loki would have laughed, but suddenly his stomach growled with light, and then became transparent. Loki gaped at it, having never seen anything like it before. Thor was also looking at it in wonder. 

Bruce and Betty stood there, spellbound, before both leaned over his stomach and started examining it.

"What...?" Loki gasped.

"This is fascinating." Bruce murmured, placing his hands on Loki's lump and gently manipulating it. Suddenly, the baby came into sharp view, and Loki gasped as he his baby for the first time.

"Oh." He said gently. Thor gripped his hand tightly and discreetly wiped his tears away.

"It looks..." Betty said, turning her head so that she was examining the baby from a new angle. "It looks to be doing well." She took the chart that Bruce handed to her and noted down the size and appearance, her eyes never leaving the baby floating gently in Loki's stomach.

Loki lay there for a further 3 minutes before his stomach became skin again. Betty patted it gently and said "Thank you, and next time would it be possible for you to do that again, for us."

Loki exited the medical wing and went up to his rooms, promptly bursting into tears as he clutched his stomach. Thor followed him and hugged him from behind, muttering soothingly into Loki's hair.

"My baby is safe and healthy." Loki sobbed. He couldn't explain the emotions running through him, only that he felt overwhelming relief.

"Our baby is safe and healthy." Thor said, practically floating with joy.

 

 

************

 

 

Loki enjoyed spending time in the common room. He enjoyed it now even more that he was pregnant, because, whilst his baby loved the Avengers, the way he showed it to Tony and Sam was the most entertaining.

They were currently sitting cross-legged, upside down on the ceiling. Tony was grinning and Sam was reading a newspaper, which he was allowing to drop after he read each page. 

Pepper walked into the room, intent on asking Tony about something trivial he had done, when she saw Loki grinning at the ceiling. She sighed and followed his eyes to the ceiling.

"Hi honey!" Tony said, grinning as his face turned redder and redder.

"I don't even want to know." Pepper muttered, turning around and exiting the room without another word.

 

 

* * *

 

 

 

The morning of the first Saturday in Loki's fifth month, the Avengers traipsed in to the communal kitchen for their usual team breakfast. They were therefore surprised to find it occupied by 5 people. 

One was tall, as tall as Thor, with a long narrow face and dark grey hair with grey eyes. His name was Sleipnir.

One was nearly as tall, but much thinner. He had Loki's shaped face, but with emerald green hair and narrow, slitted yellow eyes. When he grinned his teeth were fangs and his tongue was slitted. His name was Jormungandr.

One was shorter and stockier, with Loki's black hair and his green eyes. His wife, standing by the sink making coffee, had hair as yellow as the sun and bright blue eyes. His name was Fenrir. Her name was Liesle.

The last woman had pale white skin, with long straight black hair and eyes black as night. When a shadow passed over the sun, she suddenly became a corpse, skin stretched tightly over her bones and her sockets becoming empty. Her name was Hela.

Loki, who came in last, gave them all a long, sweeping glance, before noisy and very publicly bursting into tears.

"Hello Mama." Sleipnir said, smiling. "We've come home."


End file.
